1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a guidance system for an encapsulated medical device inserted into an intracavital for obtaining internal biological information, and a method of controlling the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Among conventional medical devices for obtaining internal biological information, there is a known encapsulated medical device which periodically transmits image information while moving in an intracavital.
As such an encapsulated medical device, a medical device guidance system configured to be magnetically guided has been proposed as disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-255174. In this proposal, a medical device guidance system is inserted in a intracavital a capsule unit provided with spiral projections around the perimeter contains a magnet magnetized in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and the advancing direction of the capsule unit can be smoothly changed by a magnetic field generated by a magnetic field control unit and a rotational magnetic field generator based on operating instructions. By freely changing the capsule unit advancing direction, the direction of the capsule unit can be changed upon imaging, and an image of a desired part of the intracavital can be acquired.
Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2003-111720 proposes an apparatus, which images an inspection area in the body of a patient by generating a 3D gradient magnetic field for determining the positions of a carrier, which contains a linear magnet and a measuring instrument or a sample collecting device, and functions as a robot to move freely in the body of a patient, by moving it in the body under remote control.